The thyroid is a small butterfly shaped gland in the neck that is intricately involved in body temperature, proper digestion and cognitive function and hormone health. In other words, when the thyroid isn’t happy, the body isn’t functioning properly.
I know firsthand the frustration of living with thyroid disease and how difficult it can be to get the body back in balance. I saw many doctors over a period of 7 years before finding answers and I wanted to bring my doctor on the podcast to help shed some light on thyroid disease and autoimmune disease.
Dr. Alan Christianson
Dr. Alan Christianson is a Naturopathic Doctor who specializes in natural endocrinology with a focus on thyroid health.
He read his family’s entire set of encyclopedia’s before he went to kindergarten and has always been highly intelligent.
In grade school, he struggled with epilepsy, poor coordination and obesity and after being made fun of in class one day, he resolved to get healthy. He read a lot of nutrition and health books, became interested in fitness and became the fastest runner in his class.
As a naturopathic doctor, he now helps thousands of people a year (including me) with his specialized approach to nutrition and natural medicine.
He founded Integrative Health, a practice of physicians in Arizona whose philosophy is to “Provide smart, safe, primarily natural and scientific solutions for the entire family to live in good health.”
Dr. Christianson also is a competitive unicyclist and enjoys mountain biking and rock climbing.
Thyroid Health
In this episode, we really delve into the topic of thyroid health and Dr. Christianson sheds some light on topics such as:

Why so many people are having trouble finding answers for thyroid problems
The holes in conventional testing and why “normal” lab results don’t necessarily mean there is not an issue with the thyroid
What Hashimoto’s disease is and how it differs from regular thyroid disease
Common symptoms of thyroid problems
Factors that must be optimized to help the thyroid get back in the balance
The unusual test he used to help diagnose my thyroid disorder
Why iodine can be harmful in some cases
How stress and sleep can have a bigger impact on thyroid health than food

Adrenal Health
Dr. Christianson has also done a lot of research in the area of adrenal health and he provides some unique insight on